Professional Triathlete Organisation Asian Open returns to Singapore in April 2024
The Professional Triathletes Organisation (PTO) Asian Open will return to Singapore in 2024, with the event scheduled for April 12-14.
The 100km race will feature a 2km swim, 80km bike and 18km run segment, finishing at Marina Bay. The swim event will again be held at Marina Bay while the bike and run course details will be announced in early 2024.
Tokyo 2020 Olympic gold medallist Kristian Blummenfelt and PTO women’s world No. 1 Ashleigh Gentle won the inaugural Asian Open held here in August. Both pocketed US$100,000 (S$135,700) each for their victories.
Blummenfelt of Norway completed the race in 3hr 20min 47sec, ahead of Belgian Pieter Heemeryck (3:22:46) and American Jason West (3:24:02), while Australian Gentle finished in 3:41:16, beating second-ranked Anne Haug of Germany (3:43:32) with American Chelsea Sodaro third in 3:46:10.
PTO chief executive Sam Renouf said: “Singapore was a big weekend for the PTO because it represented exactly how we’re looking to take longer distance triathlons to a broader audience – through world-class athletes going head-to-head in iconic locations and broadcast to a global audience.”
Besides Singapore, this season’s PTO Tour had two other stops. The European Open was held in Ibiza on May 6 and the US Open in Milwaukee on Aug 5. The 2024 European Open will again be in Spain from Sept 28-29.
Singapore Tourism Board’s executive director for sports & wellness Ong Ling Lee said: “With Singapore’s iconic cityscape as the backdrop, the PTO Asian Open adds to our impressive calendar of unique experiences, offering participants an unforgettable opportunity to swim in the bay unlike anywhere else in the world.”
Besides the professional categories, other events are the 100km experienced amateur triathlon, standard (4.5km run, 32km bike, 4.5km run) and long distance (9km run, 64km bike, 9km run) duathlons.
The 2023 race saw Singapore’s Olympic champion Joseph Schooling participate in the team relay category alongside other national athletes like cyclist Calvin Sim and marathoner Jasmine Goh.
Participants can register their interest at protriathletes.org/events/pto-tour/asian-open/age-group
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